Transmigration: The Evil Mother-In-Law Is Actually Innocent!
Chapter 382: Can’t Take It With You When You Die_1

Chapter 382: Chapter 382: Can’t Take It With You When You Die_1

Zhou Shuren had already mounted the carriage when he saw Chang Lian still standing there foolishly. He frowned slightly, "Aren’t you leaving?"

Chang Lian didn’t wait for Fen Mo to reply and swiftly boarded the carriage they had arrived in.

Fen Mo, "....."

Ever since the mistress left the house, he found that all the masters at home did not even dare to breathe freely. Well, neither did they, the servants!

Upon returning to the Zhou residence, the whole family was waiting for dinner. Zhou Shuren was in a good mood; not only had he acquired twenty thousand taels of silver for the development of Lizhou, but he had also refused to be co-opted. Zhou Shuren thought about this year’s taxation. The storehouses’ potatoes and sweet potatoes had been replaced with corn and other grains that could be stored. Despite the fact that some of the county tax collection was virtually non-existent, Lizhou as a whole was still doing well.

Zhou Shuren silently did the calculations. With the New Year approaching, he wondered if there would be any kind of year-end bonus. He sipped his wine, knowing the Emperor saw silver as light, a generous reward would be nice, but a year-end bonus was out of question.

Zhou Shuren was in high spirits, hence the dining atmosphere in the main hall was relaxed.

The only one conflicted was Chang Lian; he had only heard of how formidable the old master was, but today he had witnessed it. He wanted to toast the old master, his eager hand hesitated, and he felt terribly stifled.

The incident at the restaurant was known by all officials in Lizhou by that same evening, without having to wait until the next day.

Mr. Chen’s jaw dropped, "Say that again; I didn’t catch it."

The young servant was silent, knowing the master hadn’t misheard but simply couldn’t believe it. He repeated it, feeling a bit sentimental inside. Not only was Mr. Zhou a good official, he was quite the romantic. He couldn’t help but look at his master. After all, their concubine was gifted to them!

As for Mr. Zhou having misheard, he didn’t believe it for a second; that was a lie meant only to deceive the naive commoners.

Chen Chen waved the young servant away. Once he was gone, he couldn’t help but curse, "Zhou Shuren sure is something, trapping twenty thousand taels just like that."

After thinking it over, Chen Chen fell silent. He was filled with envy; Zhou Shuren had the support of the people and the Emperor’s favor. That was Zhou Shuren’s confidence. He simply couldn’t compete, and it was souring.

At the He Residence, Mr. He was speechless for a long while. He felt far inferior to Mr. Zhou, but at least Mr. Zhou was cunning. Mr. He brightened up again. Mr. Zhou’s reputation was too high, and he climbed too fast. There was still a sour taste in his heart, though; rapid promotion always invokes jealousy.

Men thought that Zhou Shuren was shamelessly cunning, while women were green with envy over Zhulan, who was not at home. Zhulan went from being the envy of the women in her hometown to being the object of envy for all the women in Lizhou!

Zhulan had no idea and only felt that she sneezed a lot that night, frightening Zhou Laoda and Zhou Laoer into a constant worry, asking if she had caught a chill. Zhulan denied it, but they didn’t believe her, so Zhou Shuren insisted on calling a doctor.

Zhulan was speechless; didn’t she know if she had caught a chill? "Do you think I’m senile and confused, unable to even know if I’m sick?"

Zhou Laoda sent the doctor away and felt relieved, "Mother, won’t you take pity on your son?"

Before he left home, he had been constantly intimidated by the old master!

Zhou Laoer didn’t even want to recall the words with which their father threatened them. They were genuinely afraid of being disciplined by the old master upon returning home.

Zhulan, "....Everyone, go back to rest!"

Early the next morning, as soon as Zhou Shuren arrived at the government office, he received the twenty thousand taels in silver notes, which he gave to Mr. Chen for recording, "Now we have the funds to build the ice cellars."

Mr. Chen gave a thumbs-up, "Mr. Zhou, there are few people I truly admire, but I must say I really admire you. I’m impressed, so impressed."

Then he happily accepted the silver note. Although there was some Silver Coin recorded in his account, a portion had to be sent back to the capital, leaving not much in the account. Who knew what the next year would be like? He was so worried that he was losing hair, but now he had Silver.

Zhou Shuren, sipping on his tea, said, "In the future, Mr. Chen could admire me a bit more."

He had many ways of conning money. If he wasn’t afraid of accruing too much hatred, he would have directly included the matter of donating Silver in the Zhezi to the Emperor. Although it seemed as if he was seeking benefits for the merchants, he was actually duping merchants across the entire country. That much enmity was worth avoiding.

Mr. Chen, speechless, watched Zhou Shuren drink his tea. The longer Mr. Chen associated with Zhou Shuren, the thicker he found Zhou Shuren’s skin to be.

The entourage with the rewards arrived before noon. Zhou Shuren expressed his gratitude. Watching the number of officials and soldiers in the procession, he felt disdain in his heart. This was not only a gift-delivering visit but also a convenient tax collection.

After making arrangements for the government officers and others, Zhou Shuren didn’t care much for the food. What he cared about were the deeds to the properties in his hands and yes, the whole piece of jade. Such generosity, indeed!

Such a large, high-quality piece of jade was a treasure if carved from the entire block. However, Zhou Shuren narrowed his eyes, as he had no plans to keep the carved piece as a family heirloom.

He and Zhulan worked to death to save Silver for the Zhou family, yet save a family heirloom? Dream on. Moreover, even if it was saved, it couldn’t guarantee the Zhou family would be prosperous forever. Who knew who would benefit from it in the future? Plus, they couldn’t take the treasures with them when they died. It was better to enjoy them while alive.

This piece of jade... hmm, it was enough to carve a small box full of jewelry for Zhulan, and they would all be top-grade jade pieces. Wearing them would bring much prestige. It was a shame that items bestowed by the Emperor couldn’t be sold. If they could be sold, Zhulan wouldn’t have to work so hard. Zhou Shuren thought to himself that the Emperor might not have Silver, but he had plenty of treasures. Although sometimes the Emperor could be stingy, he was quite generous whenever it served his interest.

Zhou Shuren was a man of action. In Lizhou Prefecture City, there were many craftsmen with outstanding skills. Zhou Shuren had someone invite them over, planning to first make two sets, which didn’t even amount to a third of the entire piece of jade. The remaining two-thirds would wait for Zhulan’s return, so she could have the jewelry carved to her liking.

The Emperor had rewarded not only Zhou Shuren. Mr. Chen and Mr. He, among others, had put on a good show and received some honeyed tangerines and a few tribute ornaments. That was all.

The two officials could drink as much vinegar as they wanted, but they had no choice—after all, every policy in Lizhou City had been proposed by Mr. Zhou.

On Zhulan’s end, she had long entered the southern territories. Today, she was going to continue traveling south by boat. This was her first time taking a boat since arriving in ancient times, and it was quite the novelty. However, she soon started feeling a bit sick. The wind was strong today, and although it sped the journey along, the intense rocking, coupled with her body unaccustomed to boat travel, was making her seasick.

The journey south with the wind was indeed swift. What Zhulan expected to take three days by boat only needed two to reach the port.

She was now within the southern lands, and even though it was winter, the clothing was almost the same as the northern autumn wear. Zhulan decided not to continue further south. Jingzhou City was sufficient. As she sat on the boat, she looked around and saw green vegetable fields on both sides—this was enough for her.

She checked into an inn at Jingzhou City. The south was bustling with delicate architecture. Zhulan was somewhat used to it, having frequently visited Jiangnan in modern times.

Zhou the Elder and Zhou the Second were like country bumpkins entering the city, their eyes not wide enough to take it all in.

Zhulan calculated the journey. Originally, she had anticipated it to take a month, but it didn’t, partly because she had changed her destination and no longer traveled further south, naturally shortening the duration. Zhulan was happy—she could return home sooner. Yes, home, where Zhou Shuren was, that was her home.

Zhulan sent Steward Ding and Zhou the Second out to explore, while she just wanted to rest properly. She chose a room by the street side and sat by the window, watching the pedestrians below.

The land in Jingzhou was fertile, and flooding was rare due to its topography. The more Zhulan thought about it, the more satisfied she became with Jingzhou.

The prosperity of Jingzhou was well-justified, unaffected by normal circumstances unless disrupted by war.